The veteran made his 376th appearance in victory over Stoneyburn but thinks record won't last long

Blackburn United veteran Alan Brown says he expects his appearance record to be broken — because nobody wants to leave the club.

The 34-year-old made his 376th appearance for the South Division promotion challengers in their recent 4-3 win over Stoneyburn, breaking the previous record set by long time team-mate Craig Spence.

Brown,
who has had three different spells with the New Murrayfield Park side, said : “It’s a great club to play for and great club to be part of.

“Once you come, you don’t really want to leave.

“I
think the record will be broken because it’s a good place to come and play football for youth players and, I dare say, there will be a lot of guys here for a while.”

The defender, who capped his record with a stunning strike, first signed for
the club in 1997 and was hailed by manager Mark Campbell.

“He was only 17 when he joined but you could see he had quality,” said Campbell.

“The passing and movement was terrific and he could score goals too.

“He’s
dropped back to defence now but if we’re maybe chasing the game, we don’t always need to make a substitute, we can just put Alan further up the field and I know he’ll do the job.”

Brown says he’s come a long way since his debut as a youngster against Sauchie.

“I
got the last 20 minutes and the first thing I did was stick it through the defender’s legs and 10 minutes later he volleyed me off the park. It
was a harsh lesson. I learned quickly not to do that to older guys!

“When
I first came it was all older players and there’s a big difference now as it’s full of youngsters and I’m kind of the senior player and take these guys under my wings.”

Brown,
who is set to get a testimonial in July, claimed the Millenium Cup run has been the highlight of his time at the club, although that could be surpassed if they clinch a top-two spot this year.

“To be involved in a final with a team like Blackburn was just phenomenal and surreal,” he said.

“We drew Linlithgow in one of the earlier rounds and were 2-1 down with five minutes to go and got the win.

“To beat a team like Linlithgow at their place was great.

“That whole run was amazing, just obviously disappointing to get beat in the final.

“This season is the best since then, definitely. We’re on the up and if we can get promoted
this season I don’t think there’s any doubt we can establish ourselves at the higher level.”

United sit five points clear in second place, although Dundonald have two games in hand, with their promotion
push set to go right down to the wire.

Whether Brown will be around for the ride next season though, is unclear.